READ THIS NEXT: This Iconic Retailer Is Closing More Than 70 Locations, Starting Now. ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb The store closures aren’t stopped there. Based on several local reports, CVS is gearing up to close several locations later this month. The popular drugstore chain’s first closure is set for June 15, when a downtown CVS in Berkeley, California, will turn customers away, Berkeleyside recently reported. According to the news outlet, a sign on the store alerting residents about the closure was first posted on May 25 and just two days later, several of the shelves were already empty. On June 16, the CVS on East Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, will be permanently shut down, The Daily Tar Heel just reported. This closure will be followed up by a third store shutdown from the drugstore chain—this time in Coral Springs, Florida. According to TAPinto, a CVS spokesperson confirmed that its location at the northwest corner of Riverside Drive will only remain open until June 20. RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. The upcoming closures are a sign that CVS is continuing work it began earlier this year. The drugstore chain has shuttered several locations in the first six months of 2022. This includes a CVS in Rockville, Maryland, which closed in April, and locations in Johnson City, New York; Charleston, South Carolina; and Westland, Michigan—all of which closed in May. According to The Times of Northwest Indiana, a number of CVS locations in various Indiana and Illinois cities were closed by May as well: Whiting, Michigan City, Griffith Gary, East Chicago, and Valparaiso. CVS has even also closed one store already in June. The planned June 7 closure of a location in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, caused major backlash for the company, as leaders and residents protested against the store being shuttered. “Maintaining access to pharmacy services in historically underserved communities is an important factor we consider when making store closure decisions,” CVS said in a statement to the Chicago Tribune. “Other factors include local market dynamics, cultural and language barriers, consumer buying patterns, a community’s store density, and ensuring there are other geographic access points to meet the needs of the community, including COVID-19 testing and vaccinations.” While CVS spokesperson Monica Prinzing told Berkeleyside it was a “difficult” decision to close the Berkeley location, the closure is in line with plans the company revealed last year. In Nov. 2021, CVS announced that it would be focusing on new store formats “to drive higher engagement with consumers.” The company is now setting its sights on three distinct models: sites offering primary care services, HealthHUB locations with products and services for everyday health, and some remaining traditional CVS stores. “The company has been evaluating changes in population, consumer buying patterns and future health needs to ensure it has the right kinds of stores in the right locations for consumers and for the business,” CVS said in a statement last year. In order to make these changes, CVS revealed that it would have to reduce its existing store density by closing certain locations. According to the company, approximately 300 CVS stores will be shuttered each year for the next three years. And the three new closures match up with the original plan for the start date of this initiative, which was set to begin in spring 2022. READ THIS NEXT: These Two Popular Chains Are Closing Stores, Starting June 15.
